Stealing by Margaret Verble

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I received Stealing by Margaret Verble as an advanced reading copy/proof from Mariner Publishing after its release date of February 7, 2023. I am very grateful to Mariner Publishing for sending me a free copy and allowing me to review this book for them.

Have you ever wondered what it was like to be a young Cherokee child growing up in the South in the 1950’s? We are all aware of the racial disparity as it pertains to black Americans, but the racial profiling of Native Americans is something that is more and more coming to light.

Upon reading the synopsis of the book on the back cover, I became very excited to read the book. I was going to learn about a young Cherokee girl in the South ripped from her loving Cherokee family and made to live in a Christian Boarding school. I feel that the excitement ended there. The book did not deliver on what was promised on the cover. Verble fell short.

Kit Crockett’s Cherokee mother died of tuberculosis when she was only 6 leaving her with her grieving and distant caucasian father to be raised in the country near the bayou in the 1950’s. She has a loving Cherokee family who visits often (some of whom are also married to whites). Kit spends her time reading, fishing, and taking care of her father. When a freak event snowballs into her father going to jail, the question comes down to whether or not Kit’s Cherokee family is fit to care for her or if she will be sent to a Christian boarding school.

I feel that the “bones” of the story are good, but Verble never quite delivers. It is almost as if this story could have been told about any poor American girl during this time period. The only thing that seemed to separate it from this is that Kit seemed worried that the people in authority would think her family drank too much. The story itself is pretty interesting. A little bit of mystery… unfortunately it is not really completely cleared up at the end which is very frustrating.

There are triggers in this book for violence and sexual assault on a child. I would recommend this book for those who enjoy historical fiction. I would however warn that it really left the Cherokee portion unfulfilled. I rated it 3 stars but may have gone 4 if it were not for the misleading book cover synopsis.

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